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Webster 1913 Edition


Baal

Ba′al

(bā′al)
,
Noun.
;
Heb. pl.
Baalim
(-ĭm)
.
[Heb.
ba’al
lord.]
1.
(Myth.)
The supreme male divinity of the Phoenician and Canaanitish nations.
☞ The name of this god occurs in the Old Testament and elsewhere with qualifying epithets subjoined, answering to the different ideas of his character; as, Baal-berith (the Covenant Baal), Baal-zebub (Baal of the fly).
2.
pl.
The whole class of divinities to whom the name Baal was applied.
Judges x. 6.

Webster 1828 Edition


Baal

BA'AL

,
Noun.
An idol among the ancient Chaldeans and Syrians, representing the sun. The word signifies also lord, or commander; and the character of the idol was varied by different nations, at different times. Thus Baal Berith is supposed to signify the Lord of the Covenant; Baal Peor, or rather Baal Phegor, the Lord of the dead. Ps. cvi, Baal Zebub, the god of flies, &c.

Definition 2024


Baal

Baal

See also: baal, bål, ba’al, Baʿal, and Ba'al

English

Alternative forms

Proper noun

Baal (countable and uncountable, plural Baals or Baalim)

  1. (mythology, biblical) A storm and fertility god of the Phoenician and Canaanite pantheons, reckoned as chief of the gods by the 1st millennium BC.
  2. (mythology, biblical, sometimes lowercase) Various other Baalim, understood as distinct patron gods or as local patron aspects the great god Baal.
  3. (Christianity) One of the demons or fallen angels of Satan.
  4. (often lowercase) A false deity or idol; (obsolete, pejorative) Catholic or Orthodox icons of the saints.

Usage notes

The latinized spelling and anglicized pronunciation is still used for the expanded senses, but modern scholarship increasingly notes the ayin of the original name by spelling it Baʿal or Ba'al and pronouncing it more in line with the original Hebrew form. Misunderstood as a solar deity by 19th century scholarship; misunderstood as a collective term for various patron gods by 19th and 20th century scholarship prior to the discovery of inscriptions at Ugarit showing these to have been understood as aspects of a single divinity, whose worship gradually supplanted that of El. These aspects are sometimes distinguished by epithets: Baalberith, Beelzebub, Beelzebul, etc.

The Hebraic plural Baalim is particularly used for its appearances in the Bible, where it may refer to gods or idols of the god. The anglicized plural is more common in other contexts.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

Anagrams

References

  1. Oxford English Dictionary, 1st ed. "Baal, n. Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1885.
  2. Merriam-Webster Online. "baal". 2015.
  3. Webb's Easy Bible Names Pronunciation Guide. "Baal". Steven Webb (Riverside), 2012.

Italian

Proper noun

Baal m

  1. Baal

Anagrams

baal

baal

See also: Baal, bål, ba’al, Baʿal, and Ba'al

Cimbrian

Noun

baal m (plural [please provide])

  1. drainage canal

References

  • “baal” in Umberto Martello Martalar, Alfonso Bellotto, Dizionario della lingua Cimbra dei Setti Communi vicentini, 1st edition, 1974.

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -aːl
  • IPA(key): [baːl]

Noun

baal f (plural balen, diminutive baaltje n)

  1. bale of hay

Verb

baal

  1. first-person singular present indicative of balen
  2. imperative of balen

Yucatec Maya

Verb

baal (transitive)

  1. to hide, to conceal.
  2. to protect, to shelter, to shield.
  3. to guard, to keep.

Inflection